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It seems like it was just yesterday when I went live on the air for the first episode of Underground Wellness Radio.

The date was November 11th, 2008 and my guest was Reed Davis, founder of Functional Diagnostic Nutrition.

There I was, in my shoebox of a studio apartment doing my end of the broadcast from a cordless phone. No fancy equipment. No idea what I was doing. And barely anyone listened.

But I knew there was something to this whole podcasting thing, so I kept showing up. Each week the listenership grew larger and larger, eventually blossoming into a community of Undergrounders across the globe.

And here we are now, almost seven years and 346 episodes later, with one of the most popular health podcasts on the planet. Something that I’m certainly proud of and grateful for.

But something feels off…

For the past year or so, I’ve felt stuck. I mean, while health will always be my first love, it’s not what I’m all about. It’s not all that I have to offer.

And that gnawing feeling … you know, the one you feel when you know you’re not doing exactly what you want to do …. has been eating me up inside.

To me, it was a slam dunk. Vaccines and their noxious ingredients were the obvious culprits, and no one could ever convince me otherwise..

But as time went on, I became less convinced. I guess you can say that I was “on the fence” about it, not completely certain yet still concerned about the impact of the expanded vaccine schedule on the health of our children.

Yet after spending the past couple weeks intensely studying the historical timeline of autism and Asperger’s, I can no longer sit on that fence.

I can say with the utmost certainty that vaccines are not even remotely responsible for the dramatic rise in autism diagnoses over the past few decades.

ADDENDUM: This is not to say that vaccines are not a contributing factor. As you will learn in today’s interview, there are 4 very significant reasons that the numbers spiked. These include a change to a much broader diagnostic criteria for autism in the DSM-IV, increased awareness via the movie Rain Man, the availability of reliable diagnostic testing, improved access to psychiatric services, and a very critical typo in the DSM-IV that went unaddressed for half a decade. These factors have largely been overlooked and are the focus of today’s episode. The intention of the broadened criteria was to cause a spike in diagnoses so that those diagnosed could receive the services they needed and were not getting without a diagnosis. It was intentional. The rise in numbers was not due to vaccines alone. This is what the podcast is about.

Yeah, I should probably know better than to make such a bold statement. I mean, we all know what happened after my Gluten Lie episode…

But that’s how I really feel. Or as one of my Facebookers posted recently, “My opinion changes with new information.”

While vaccine injuries do in fact happen, and while I do think that vaccines contain potentially hazardous ingredients, I do not believe that vaccines are the driving force behind the relatively recent spike in autism incidence.

Honestly, I feel like anyone who has ever studied the history of the condition — what went on before Raymond Babbitt’s cross-country road trip or Dr. Wakefield’s sketchy study — will very likely agree with me.

Unfortunately, this history had been long forgotten and replaced by the prevailing myth that autism is a contemporary epidemic rooted in our modern ways — processed foods, toxins, nutrient deficiencies, and immunizations.

There’s nothing modern about autism. Those children (and adults) were always there. It’s just that no one knew what to call them or what to do with them.

The broadcast opened with a motivational segment, narrated by award-wining actor Forrest Whitaker, about the undeniable facts of life — the ups and downs, triumphs and tragedies, victories and struggles.

Life is never easy, he said.

Nor would he have it any other way. Because it’s the hardships, adversities, and setbacks — the behind-the-scenes drama — that make the victories so sweet.

The struggle is not optional but requisite. Happens for us, not to us. It has the propensity to topple, teach, or transform. The choice is ours.

Mr. Whitaker’s speech could not have come at a more perfect time, as it embodied the life and times of today’s podcast guest.

If you ever met Cynthia Pasquella, you might notice her slight Southern twang, welcoming smile, or made-for-TV looks. You might wonder where you’d seen her before. And if you couldn’t quite place her, you’d certainly Google her the first chance you get.

What you’d find is a successful, passionate woman living her purpose — the bestselling author, the media personality, the public speaker and educator, the entrepreneur.

But what you’d likely never imagine is her struggle.

Behind the curtain and out of sight is the story of a deeply impoverished upbringing beset with domestic violence, sexual abuse, and interminable tragedy.

On today’s episode, Cynthia revealed her story to me (and to you) in a way that she has never told it before. Unfiltered and powerfully vulnerable.

It’s a story that could have easily toppled her, but she chose transformation. It happened for her, not to her. Life is never easy.

If that perfectly healthy vegetable wasn’t on my Metabolic Typing food list, I wouldn’t eat it. It would shift me “out of balance”.

If I forgot to bring my water bottle to the gym, I would much rather die of thirst than take a sip from the fountain. That chlorine would kill me … instantly.

If the hotel room didn’t have blackout curtains, there’s no way I could sleep.

But let’s just ignore the fact that I slept like a baby before some blogger told me that even the teeny, tiniest light exposure would “suppress my melatonin”.

I’m not saying that the Metabolic Typing Diet, avoiding trace exposures to chlorine, and keeping pitch black sleeping quarters are all ridiculously pointless ideas. Not at all.

What I am saying is that my own relentless efforts to implement every single “healthy lifestyle tip” I ever heard or read about sent me off the deep end. Totally overboard.

It wasn’t just me.

My friend Kevin Gianni, once a hugely popular raw vegan YouTuber, was suffering from a similar neurosis. Perceived to be the model of perfect health to tens of thousands of viewers, Kevin’s life behind-the-scenes was something different altogether.

He was irritable. Obsessed over his next meal. Chronically fatigued. And just no fun to be around.

As it turns out, Kevin’s supposed healthy obsession was making him ill. His tenacious pursuit to unearth the complexities of utopian health ultimately brought him back to one place…

Simplicity.

On today’s episode of Underground Wellness Radio, Kevin and I discuss his journey from raw food “renegade” to the more reasonable, realistic husband and father of two he is today.

I actually uploaded this episode last Friday and many of my iTunes subscribers have called it their favorite episode EVER. You’ll dig it.